Classroom Management Ideas

I have 12 ideas about how you can manage and control your classroom a little easier. I have used every tip below in my classroom and I'm sharing them today. Hopefully you'll pick up a few new ideas or tricks that you can begin using today. Many of these ideas are FREE and some of them are paid products. 

How do you manage your classroom? Behavior management seems to change every year depending on your mob of students. Some years run smoother than other years. It all depends on who you get in your classroom and how everyone gets along. I am describing the tips below and when you click on the picture, it will take you to the product or the blog post and you'll be able to download it from there. If you click the Classroom Management picture above, it will take you to my Pinterest board already full of classroom management ideas that I've found from other teachers around the web! 

Do you have your students sit in teams or do you do anything in teams? These cards might stop the fighting and arguing. Students are assigned a job in the team. This will make sure everyone does their part in helping the team achieve their goal. This is FREE. Just click the picture on the left to read more about it and download it from there.

Do you highlight a student each week? These "Me" posters will let each student share a little bit about themselves. These posters will help get to know their classmates too. To build a classroom community, students need to get to know each other. These posters are a great start to get to know them. This is also FREE. Click the picture to download it from TPT. 

Here is a FREE self-assessment idea. When you're teaching a concept, these cards come in handy to see how your students are understanding curriculum. I give my students a set of these cards. I have my students lay on their desk the card they feel suits them best when they are learning. A student may have a 1 on their desk. This lets me know he/she needs help. If a student has a 4 on their desk, this lets me know they don't need help and might be able to help others. These are great for class management because you don't have hands raised or students shouting out they need help. These cards will let you know what's happening with students without a word spoken.

Do you need a lesson plan template? This lesson plan sheet might help you to stay organized. I color code my lesson plan sheets; blue for math, pink for language arts, etc... This lesson plan sheet is attached to everything I need for the lesson. It's used year after year and I have less planning to do each year. This will help you stay organized and your time can be used somewhere else.  

Who loves praise? I do! These are great little awards to boost some spark and get your students on their best behavior. I hand these awards out when I see someone doing something great or doing really well in a subject area. 

These awards are personal. I have to add their name and I sign it too. These take a few more extra minutes to fill out, but making them personal is rewarding in itself. Sometimes I have them collect 10 awards and they can turn them in for a prize. Sometimes I use them all year and sometimes I use them at the end of each quarter. Either way, you will build a strong classroom community when you let your students know how they are doing. Everyone likes recognition and these will let your students know you are aware of their efforts and you're proud of them!  

What are your strategies to grab your student's attention? I love these posters. They help me grab my student's attention when I need to make an announcement. These grabbers are so much fun too! Your students will get a kick out of them. Click the picture to read more about them. 

You will need a timer to set limits on activities and keep you on schedule. This timer is in PowerPoint! It's here to get you started. You can make any changes you like to the slides or the timer. This Timer is FREE! Click the picture on the left to download it and read more about it.

Do you have students that do not complete their work on time? Or do you have students that are absent and need to complete their work?  This little missing assignment note is perfect to staple to a pack of missing work. Parents will need to sign it. This will help you stay organized with missing assignments and stay in touch with parents about missing work. This is FREE! Click the picture to read more about it and download it from there.

At the beginning of the year and throughout, I brainstorm with students about behavior and rules. On a large chart paper, I draw a 4 square box with a circle in the middle. In the middle circle I put a rule or a behavior I want to address or talk about. Then, I label each box with IS - Does - Says - Is NOT.  For example: In the middle circle I put a behavior like "Good Classmate". I brainstorm with students what makes a good classmate. Each box is labeled: A Good Classmate is.... A Good Classmate does...., A Good Classmate says.... A Good Classmate Is Not... Then I make a list in each box what the students brainstormed. This is a good visual for students to see, hear, and understand what a good classmate might look like. Use rules or other behaviors you would like students to be aware of when in the classroom. You can click the picture to see the FREE chart.

Here is a fun class management idea! Punch cards are easy to set up. Copy a class set of punch cards. Give each student a card and have them tape it to their desk. When I see a student following a rule or doing something good, I punch a hole on their card. When a student gets 20 punches they get a small prize. Prizes might include an eraser, a piece of candy, or even lunch in the classroom with me. If you don't want to punch a hole you can stamp a space on their card or add a tiny sticker. Then, give them another punch card to get another 20 punches. These punch cards will get your students to behave all year long! 

I have a tin can with Popsicle sticks in them. Each popsicle stick is numbered. I assign my students a number each year. When I'm teaching, I'll pull a stick out of the tin can and the number I pull out has to answer the question. This will keep your students on their toes and listening just in case their stick gets pulled from the tin can. All students get a chance to answer a question. This is also fair for them knowing everyone has an equal chance of being called on to answer. These sticks come in handy! You never know when you need to call on someone or get their attention when you shake the tin can. 

Whole class rewards are a great management tool to build a classroom community. It's simple and easy too. I draw a jar on my white board. When the entire class is being quiet, or walking correctly in line, I draw a star in the jar. When the jar has 10 stars, the class gets something. They might get an extra 5 minutes of recess or we might play a class game. We usually brainstorm what they want as a prize. One time I brought oreo cookies in and the class reward was cookies. You can use a real jar and fill it with marbles too. Think about how you can reward the class for good behavior. This may get them working together as a team.

Here are some classroom management tools that may be helpful. I found these items on Amazon. Click below to read more about them:
Behavior Clip Chart
Behavior Pocket Chart
Punch Cards
Poster
The Classroom Management Book
Dr. Seuss Rules

Hopefully, you have picked up a new trick or two for classroom management. I will keep adding ideas to this post as I find new helpful hints. Stay tuned.
See you soon,